Even though medical science has made remarkable progress over the past few centuries, it still doesn’t understand the subtler dimensions of human life. There are so many aspects of our being that science hasn’t been able to explain. Take, for example, the chakra system of the human body. While spiritual sciences have talked about this system for thousands of years, mainstream science hasn’t even begun to explore it.
If you have ever attended a guided meditation session or taken a yoga class, you might have seen a diagram of a human body with colorful circles from top to bottom. These colorful circles are usually used to represent the chakras in the human body. But what exactly are these chakras and what are their functions? That’s what we are going to explore in this blog post.
An Introduction To The Chakra System
Just as electricity runs through wires in a building, life force energy flows throughout your body via specific pathways. This life force energy has been called by different names in different cultures. In Hinduism, it is called prana. In Chinese, it is called Qi. In Tibetan Buddhism, it is called lung. No matter the name, the concept is the same. This energy is the reason we are all alive and conscious. So, it is absolutely necessary that it flows in our body freely.
This is where chakras come in. Chakras are the energy centers through which life force energy flows. They are formed by the intersection of energy pathways in the body. Even though there are more than a hundred chakras in the body, there are seven that are the most prominent. These seven chakras run along the spine from your tailbone to your crown. Each chakra is tasked with governing different aspects of your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual dimensions. Let’s take a look at each chakra in brief.
1) The Root Chakra
This chakra is situated at the perineum or the base of your spine. It governs your survival instincts and roots you in your physical body. It also provides you with a sense of belonging and security.
2) The Sacral Chakra
This chakra is located below your belly button. It is considered the source of all your emotions. It is said to govern the reproductive organs along with your sexuality and creativity.
3) The Solar Plexus Chakra
This chakra is situated in your stomach area (at the diaphragm). It controls your digestive system and serves as the source of your personal power. As such, it governs your sense of self-esteem and gut feeling.
4) The Heart Chakra
The heart chakra is located at the physical heart. It controls your circulatory system and cardiovascular health. It also influences your feelings of love, kindness, compassion, empathy, and peace.
5) The Throat Chakra
This chakra is located at the pit of the throat. On the physical side of things, it governs your throat, tongue, mouth, tonsils, neck, etc. On the non-physical side, it controls your ability to speak, creativity, self-expression, the power of your voice, and so on.
6) The Third Eye Chakra
This is one of the most mystical chakras in the body. Located in the forehead, this chakra governs your intuition, knowledge, perception, and even psychic abilities. It also controls the functioning of your head, pituitary gland, eyes, sense organs, etc.
7) The Crown Chakra
This is the master chakra in your body. It controls all the other chakras and serves as your path to transcendence. When your energies reach this chakra, you become enlightened. The crown chakra governs your wisdom, life’s purpose, awareness, and ability to connect to the divine.